Why does the same perfume smell different around the world?
Why Japan discourages perfume at dinner, why South Korea still treats fragrance as taboo, and why oud is changing
Perfume itself doesn’t change—we do. The same scent can be welcomed, avoided, or interpreted in completely different ways depending on where it is worn. Scientists have long known that memory shapes our sense of smell. Now, a growing body of research suggests that our experiences do too, influencing not only the notes we enjoy but also the meanings we attach to them. From Japan’s perfume etiquette to Korea’s evolving relationship with fragrance and the global rise of oud, it turns out that perfume is as much about culture as it is about chemistry.
One study comparing French, Vietnamese and American participants reached a similar conclusion. Researchers found that simply giving an everyday odour a name or context reduced cultural differences. The molecules are the same, but they tell different stories depending on who encounters them. This may explain why certain fragrances are associated with desserts in the US, medicine in France and flowers in Vietnam, even though all have links to traditional medicine.
To understand why the same perfume can carry such different meanings around the world, I spoke to fragrance journalist and author Marco Martello.
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Why Wearing Perfume to Dinner Is Considered Rude in Japan
For many of us, wearing perfume before a special dinner feels almost instinctive. I asked Marco Martello whether that was true everywhere. “Not at all. In some countries, the opposite is expected,” he replied.
In many restaurants in Japan, wearing strong perfume is actually forbidden, as it’s believed to alter how people taste their food. This isn’t just unique to Japan, though.
Something similar happened in Italy, albeit on a smaller scale, in the 1980s, when Dior Poison was banned from some restaurants and clubs because its powerful trail could mask the smell and taste of food and wine. The original formula from the 80s no longer exists. Over the years, it has become lighter and softer, mostly due to new IFRA regulations (the organisation that oversees which ingredients can be used in perfumes) and the banning of some natural allergenic ingredients. Longtime fans say the perfume still has the same DNA today but has lost the intensity and drama of the original.
Oud Is No Longer Just a Middle Eastern Fragrance
If someone asked you to think about an Asian fragrance, what would come to your mind? Probably something light, delicate, perhaps with notes of rose water or lotus flower. That may have been true in the past, but things have changed. “There’s a lot of curiosity now, a real desire to explore different olfactory experiences, especially among younger people,” explained Martello. “It’s no longer uncommon to see Asian customers asking for oud fragrances, which are a far cry from the old stereotype. I remember some Chinese customers choosing oud too.”
But we can’t really talk about Asia as a single entity, since the differences between countries are so significant.
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Why Perfume Is Still a Taboo in South Korea
“Perfume is still considered somewhat taboo in Korea today. I spoke with the founder of Born to Stand Out, and he told me that his mother and his young wife both dislike perfume; they see it in a very negative light,” added the fragrance journalist. “For older generations, wearing perfume is still linked to a sense of transgression, similar to how tattoos in Japan were once associated with people living on the margins of society.”
In Korea, perfume usually only comes up in conversation about skincare. Niche brands are rare, and even brands that open flagship stores there—like Born to Stand Out—tend to serve a very small, mostly young community.
“There’s definitely a cultural reason, but there’s also a physical one: in Korea, people generally don’t sweat with a strong odour. That’s why it’s hard to find deodorant in a regular supermarket there,” noted Martello.
This also relates to the history of Western perfumery. For centuries in Europe, perfume was used to mask unpleasant odours when people didn’t bathe often, fearing that water could spread disease. Perfume was mostly used by royalty and the upper classes. In Korea, with no such need to cover up odours, the culture of buying perfume never really took root.
China’s New Perfume Brands Are Breaking Every Rule
In China, the story is quite different, with niche markets exploring some really unusual directions. One example is Tombstone, a Chinese brand founded in 2024 by Lan Xiao that centres its entire identity—bottles, names, concept—around themes rarely seen in perfumery: memory, the passage of time, and things that don’t last forever. Each bottle is handmade, and each fragrance is created by a different independent perfumer. One of them, Yenchi Lin, a Taiwanese perfumer trained in Grasse, made a scent based on honey and white flowers, delicate and not what you would expect from a brand like this.
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The Korean Perfume Brand That Became Bigger Abroad Than at Home
Even though perfume is still somewhat taboo in Korea, it’s interesting that one of the most talked-about niche brands in recent years actually comes from there. Born to Stand Out was founded in 2022 by Jun Lim, a former financial consultant in the cosmetic industry and a longtime art and perfume collector. He wanted to build something that could challenge a Korean market much more accustomed to skincare than to fragrances.
The name itself is a statement: white bottles that evoke the elegance of Korean tradition, with red details that deliberately disrupt that harmony. The fragrances, created by famous perfumers like Olivier Cresp, Daphné Bugey and Nathalie Lorson, open with rich, gourmand notes and become more complex the longer you wear them.
The brand grew quickly beyond Asia, opening a flagship store at Printemps in Paris and, more recently, in Italy. Still, it remains a small player in the broader South Korean market, where, as Marco Martello puts it, perfume remains “a niche within a niche.” Perhaps the most telling detail is this: a brand born to challenge a cultural taboo that found more success abroad than at home.
Do Cities Have Their Own Scent?
One final question was inevitable: which country had surprised him most with its fragrance culture? Marco Martello’s answer caught me off guard.
Instead of naming a specific trip, he pointed to something different. Once perfume became his career, he began paying closer attention to the scents of the streets, noticing how some cities have distinct olfactory identities. London, his favourite city, is one of them. Some neighbourhoods, he said, seem to have their own soul, influenced by their style, the people who live there, the activities that define them, and yes, even their scent.
Lucrezia Spina
Editor, Milano
